This title shall be known and may be cited as the “Supermarket Club Card Disclosure Act of 1999.”
Obligations Arising From Particular TransactionsSupermarket Club Cards
Section § 1749.60
This law is officially named the “Supermarket Club Card Disclosure Act of 1999,” setting the formal title for the regulations concerning supermarket club cards.
Supermarket Club Card Disclosure Act 1999
Section § 1749.61
This law outlines specific definitions for terms related to supermarket club cards. It clarifies that a 'cardholder' is any customer who receives such a card, and if multiple cards are issued for the same account, all individuals sharing that account are seen as a single cardholder. A 'supermarket' is any retail store that sells food. The 'supermarket club card' is described as any device used to get discounts on retail products, excluding credit cards governed by different rules. A 'club card issuer' is a supermarket or its contracted service that provides these cards. Lastly, 'marketing information' is the data collected from a cardholder's shopping habits, shared for profit but does not include anonymous data that doesn't reveal individual identities.
For purposes of this title:
(a)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.61(a) “Cardholder” means any consumer to whom a supermarket club card is issued, provided that in cases where more than one supermarket club card has been issued for the same account, all persons holding those supermarket club cards may be treated as a single cardholder.
(b)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.61(b) “Supermarket” means any retailer that sells food items.
(c)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.61(c) “Supermarket club card” means any card, plate, coupon book, or other single device existing for the purpose of being used from time to time upon presentation for price discounts on retail products offered by the club card issuer. “Supermarket club card” does not include any credit card that is subject to Section 1748.12.
(d)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.61(d) “Club card issuer” means a supermarket that provides supermarket club cards to consumers, and includes a supermarket’s contract information services provider.
(e)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.61(e) “Marketing information” means the categorization of cardholders compiled by a club card issuer, based on a cardholder’s shopping patterns, spending history, or behavioral characteristics derived from account activity which is provided to any person or entity for consideration. “Marketing information” does not include aggregate data which does not identify a cardholder based on the
cardholder’s shopping patterns, spending history, or behavioral characteristics derived from account activity.
supermarket club card cardholder supermarket
Section § 1749.63
If someone breaks the rules outlined in this particular legal title, it's considered "unfair competition." This means it can be punished according to rules set in another part of the law dealing with business practices.
A violation of this title constitutes “unfair competition” as defined in Section 17200 of the Business and Professions Code and is punishable as prescribed in Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 17200) of Part 2 of Division 7 of the Business and Professions Code.
unfair competition violation business practices
Section § 1749.64
This law stops supermarket club card companies from asking for your driver’s license or social security number just to get a club card. They can ask for this info if the card doubles as an ID for things like check cashing, but you can't be forced to get that type of card to join the club.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no club card issuer shall request in a supermarket club card application, or require as a condition of obtaining a supermarket club card, that an applicant provide a driver’s license number or a social security account number. This section shall not be construed to prohibit a club card issuer from requesting a driver’s license number or a social security account number for a supermarket club card that can also be used as identification for check cashing purposes or to debit the checking or
savings account of the cardholder. However, no club card issuer shall, as a condition of obtaining a supermarket club card, require a cardholder to obtain a supermarket club card that can also be used as identification for check cashing purposes or to debit the checking or savings account of the cardholder.
supermarket club card driver's license number social security number
Section § 1749.65
This law states that club card issuers can't sell or share your personal information, like your name and address, without your consent. However, they can share this info for certain mailing purposes as long as it's only to send you club-related info. If a club card issuer wants to share your information for marketing, they must charge an annual fee, require annual renewals, limit shopping to cardholders only, and clearly inform you about their privacy practices. Plus, they need to ensure any company receiving your info agrees not to share it further.
(a)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.65(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no club card issuer may sell or share a cardholder’s name, address, telephone number, or other personal identification information.
(b)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.65(b) Nothing in this section is intended to prevent a club card issuer from providing names and addresses of cardholders to a third party for purposes of mailing supermarket club card information to cardholders on behalf of the club card issuer. However, that third party
shall not use the information for any other purpose.
(c)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.65(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), this section does not prohibit a club card issuer from sharing marketing information that includes cardholder names and addresses if the club card issuer complies with all of the following:
(1)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.65(c)(1) The club card issuer charges an annual fee for its supermarket club card.
(2)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.65(c)(2) The club card issuer requires cardholders to renew supermarket club cards annually and to pay an annual renewal fee.
(3)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.65(c)(3) The club card issuer allows only cardholders, and not members of the public, to make purchases in the supermarket.
(4)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.65(c)(4) The club card issuer provides a privacy statement to the cardholder in the supermarket club card
application and in the club card issuer’s annual renewal material notifying cardholders that outside companies will be receiving marketing information including names and addresses of cardholders, and the cardholder has agreed to allow the club card issuer to share this information.
(5)CA Civil Law Code § 1749.65(c)(5) Prior to selling or transferring names and addresses of cardholders to an outside company, the club card issuer has obtained a written confidentiality agreement from the outside company that the outside company will not sell or share the information with any other entity.
club card issuer selling personal information sharing information
Section § 1749.66
In California, you can't give up your rights under this specific law because doing so goes against public policy, and any agreement that tries to make you waive these rights won't hold up in court.
Any waiver of the provisions of this title is contrary to public policy, and is void and unenforceable.
waiver public policy void agreements
